Dreamless
by TheChocolateNinja
Summary: “Sakura!” She looked up at him, tears welling up in unspoken grief. “I have to kill you now.” ItaSaku NaruSaku
1. Memories

**Author's Note: This is AU, if it wasn't obvious by the summary... Sakura is 18 in this fic. It will start out NaruSaku, so just bare with me here, please.**

"_Memory is a way of holding on to the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose." _Kevin Arnold

Naruto slurped up his ramen in true Naruto fashion. On one side of him sat Sakura, who was finished and was watching Naruto gulp down his fifth bowl of ramen. On the other side was Lee, who was just as enthusiastic as Naruto in eating the ramen in front of him.

"Hah!" Naruto said, slamming the bowl down on the counter. "I win." Lee slammed his bowl down a second later with a frown on his face.

"Once again you have beaten me," Lee said. "Until next time." Sakura shook her head in disbelief. They'd been having ramen eating competitions, and Naruto always won. Why did Lee even try?

He had a passion to strive to succeed, no matter how much effort it took. She admired that in Lee, just like she had with Sasuke…

"_Arigato, Sakura."_

"Sasuke-kun," she whispered. When she came back to reality, she noticed Naruto and Lee looking at her, concern on their faces. "Sorry, just… thinking back on something." Naruto wrapped his arm around her shoulders and hugged her.

"Hey, we all miss him, too, but there's nothing we can do about it," he said, smiling at her. "He made a decision and went with it. Even if it was a stupid decision… It's his life, so let him live it, okay, Sakura-chan?" She nodded silently in response.

She loved Naruto. She would deny it vehemently if anybody asked her, but it was the truth. Naruto had been the one to comfort her after Sasuke left. He had been her shoulder to cry on; he had been someone who she could hug when she felt like dying, giving her comforting words when she needed them the most.

"Yeah, Sakura-chan," Lee said, smiling widely. "Don't worry about it. Sasuke's been gone for five years." At this, Naruto looked at the counter, deep in thought.

"It's strange," he said quietly. "I haven't seen any signs of Orochimaru or the Akatsuki." He smiled and looked up, any hint of confusion gone from his face. "Oh well, I guess that's a good thing."

"Right," Lee said. "Oh yeah. Naruto, Hokage-sama told me that she needs to speak to you before the day is over." Naruto nodded and stood up, putting the money for everybody's ramen on the counter.

"Alright, then, I guess I'll go ahead and do that." He leaned over and kissed Sakura's forehead; she narrowed her eyes at him even though her cheeks turned pink. "I'll see you tomorrow, Sakura-chan." He waved as he took off towards Tsunade's office.

"It's getting late," Lee noted. "I'll walk you home, if you don't mind, Sakura-chan." Sakura smiled at her friend; he had replaced the hole that Sasuke had left in her heart. Like Naruto, Lee always found a way to cheer her up or keep her company.

"I'd love that," she said, glancing in the direction Naruto had gone. If Tsunade-sama needed to talk to Naruto, it must be important. She hoped nothing bad was going to happen.

"_The Akatsuki is a terrorist organization," Naruto had told her. "Sasuke's brother is in that group."_

"_Why are they after you, though?"_

"_I… I can't tell you."_

She still didn't know why the Akatsuki was after Naruto, or why Naruto couldn't tell her. He would always tell her everything, but not that.

"_Why not?" she asked, hands on her hips. Naruto looked at the ground._

"_I don't want you to hate me," he said softly. He looked up at her. "If I tell you why Itachi is after me, you'll hate me for the rest of your life, just like Sasuke hates Itachi."_

"_I could never hate you like that, Naruto. I…" her voice died as she saw tears forming in her friend's eyes. "Naruto…"_

"_Please," he said. "Don't worry about it. I'll be fine. Trust me."_

She knew that he wasn't fine, though, and that's what bothered her the most. She'd asked

Jiraiya-sannin, Kakashi-sensei, even Tsunade-sama, but nobody would tell her what the Akatsuki was after, what Naruto was hiding.

It was immediately obvious that her generation was left out in the cold; Naruto seemed to be the only one her age to know the secret. She wondered if it had something to do with losing his parents. She didn't even know who his parents were, or what happened to them. Everything she knew about Naruto was from the academy.

"_Why are you so worried about me?" Naruto asked, casting a side glance at her. "I'm fine. Please, don't stress anymore."_

"_I'm going to stress about it!" she said, frustrated. "You're hiding something, and I don't like it. I want to know what it is, and I want to know n--" She was cut off when he kissed her cheek quickly. He smiled sadly at her._

"_Don't worry about it, okay?" She just nodded, bewildered at the fact that he'd actually kissed her. As he walked away, she put her hand on the place he'd kissed her._

It was late in the night -- maybe early in the morning -- when Sakura was awakened by Naruto tapping on her window. She sat up in her bed and opened the window, seeing his desperate face. "What's wrong, Naru—"She was cut off when he put his hand over her mouth. "Umph…"

"Shh," he said. "We need to talk. Now." He released his hold on her mouth and she gasped for air. "There's a problem. Hokage-sama told me that Itachi has been spotted nearby, outside the village."

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked. "I can't do anything." Naruto shook his head.

"Yes you can. If he's here for me, which he probably is, he'll be willing to do anything to get me," he said. "He may come after you first, as bait for me." He put his hand on her cheek. "And it would work. I need you to find somewhere else to live, at least until Itachi's gone. Maybe Ino's house, or Hinata's. Just… don't stay here alone. Please."

"Okay," she said, mentally noting his hand on her cheek. She made no move to swat it away. She didn't mind it at all.

"I'm going to leave the village for a few days," he said. "It'll throw Itachi off for a little bit, which will give me enough time to prepare for anything he can dish out." Her eyes widened in silent recognition. "Itachi is very dangerous. I don't want you under his control at all. Please, trust me." She nodded, and he started to make his way back outside.

"Naruto," she said, grabbing his hand and stopping him. He turned around to face her and she leaned forward and kissed his lips. "I love you." Naruto blinked and stared at her for a moment before he jerked his hand out of hers and took off into the night.

"I love you, too," he whispered.


	2. Forever and Always

"_He is not a lover who does not love forever." _Euripides

Sakura ran as fast as she could to Naruto's apartment. He couldn't have left yet; the sun was just rising. As she approached his door, it opened and she tumbled into Naruto's surprised arms. "Good morning, Sakura-chan," he said, helping her regain her balance. She looked up, her nose touching his momentarily, and they both turned pink.

"Naruto," she said, hugging his waist. "Let me go with you." Naruto pushed her back and looked at her. "All night I thought about it, and I know that I'll be safer with you. He can't take me from you." Naruto smiled, albeit sadly, and shook his head.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," he said. "I want you to stay in the village." He put his hands on her shoulders. "Please, trust me."

"_Don't worry about it. I'll be fine. Trust me."_

Sakura shook her head agitatedly, tears falling down her cheeks. "I won't let you leave me like Sasuke did," she said. "Even if it is for a few days. I can't stand the thought that you might not come back. You're going out there _alone_. You won't have a team to back you up." She paused, letting the tears drip from her chin onto the floor at her feet. "I know… I know that you're a Chuunin and all, but I'm still scared for you."

"Don't you _ever_ compare me to Sasuke," Naruto said sternly, his eyes blazing. "That bastard deserves the crap he got himself in to. He walked right into Orochimaru's trap, even after we both tried to stop him. Hell, even Kakashi-sensei tried to stop him." She looked up at him in surprise. He'd never spoken of Sasuke like this before. "Besides, he's a fool to have left you here." He brushed a strand of hair out of her face as another tear rolled down her cheek.

"Naruto—"

"I have to leave," he interrupted. "I was heading out when you tackled me. Please, promise me that you'll stay with someone." She nodded. "Good. I'll be back in no later than a week." He kissed her lips and smiled at her before heading outside. She stared as he vanished from her sight, letting the tears fall freely to her feet.

"How sweet," a voice mocked from above her. She immediately took guard and looked up at where the voice was coming from. When she saw who it was, her eyes widened and she turned around, looking for any sign of Naruto. "He's gone. I was waiting for the opportune moment to snatch you away from this village." As he spoke to her, she took out a shuriken. "Honestly, you think you can fight me? I know that you're only a medical ninja. Don't try to fool me; I'm not as stupid as Sasuke." At this, she threw the small weapon at him, and he dodged it easily, jumping to the ground in front of her and gripping her arms tightly so she couldn't run.

"Let go of me," she tried to say, but no sound came out. _A genjutsu!_ She struggled against him, but he wouldn't let her go.

"I don't plan on hurting you, Sakura-chan," he drawled out into her ear. "I'm just using you. As long as you cooperate with me, no harm will come to you." She nodded, knowing that there was no use fighting against him. "Now, let's go. It should be a few hours until anybody notices you're missing." They disappeared from the apartment, and Sakura prayed that Naruto would find her.

* * *

Lee was fast. This was a fact that everyone knew and nobody questioned. That was the sole reason she had sent him to find Naruto. At least, that's what she told everyone. She knew that Lee was the closest person to Naruto and Sakura besides Kakashi, who was gone on a mission. So she sent him. _Please let Sakura be alright, _Tsunade sighed.

"NARUTO!" Lee yelled, causing the Chuunin to stop on one of the trees. Naruto turned around, and the first thing he noticed was the distressed look on his friend's face. Immediately, Naruto knew something had gone terribly wrong, and he could only guess.

"Please tell me this isn't about Itachi," Naruto said, tensing up at the now visible tear stains on Lee's cheeks. "Or Sakura…" Lee's silence was enough to tell Naruto exactly what had happened. "Damn it…"

"She never made it to the infirmary this morning," Lee said, and the blonde realized Itachi must have been at his apartment when he'd left. He'd been planning it all along. How much of that conversation had he heard?

"All other missions are secondary," Naruto stated. "You and I will gather up a bunch of people and we will hunt Itachi down." Lee grabbed Naruto's jacket before he could take off towards the village.

"You need to calm down and think rationally for once. We don't want Sakura-chan to get hurt," he said, noting Naruto's ragged breathing. "Let's go back and talk to Hokage-sama about this and get some ideas from her. I doubt Itachi will hurt her since he's using her as bait to lure you in."

"What if he does?" Naruto asked, eyes flaring wildly. "It will be all my fault, because I wouldn't let her come with me. If only I'd let her…"

"Don't think about what might happen," Lee said. "We need to hurry." With a short nod, both boys were heading back to Konoha.

* * *

"WHAT?!" Naruto screamed at Tsunade. "What do you mean we don't go after her? That's not an option!" Tsunade calmly sighed and put her chin on her fingers.

"This isn't the same mission you took five years ago to bring Sasuke back," she said, firmness in her voice. "Sakura was kidnapped, presumably to lure you to her. If you rush off after her and confront Itachi, he will have successfully gotten what he wanted, and you would be in trouble." He opened his mouth to speak. "And he would probably kill her if you showed up. If you just lay low, he won't lay a hand on her. Itachi doesn't kill unnecessarily. He always has his reasons." Naruto swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded.

"That makes sense," he said. "So… we just go on living without her?" Tsunade nodded.

"Like nothing ever happened."

* * *

When Itachi entered the hideout with Sakura, many heads turned in his direction. "What happened to capturing the Kyuubi?" Kisame asked curtly, causing Sakura's head to snap up in attention. _Kyuubi?_ Itachi shrugged.

"Things turned out a little differently than planned," he said. He pushed Sakura forward. "Her name is Haruno Sakura. She is a medical ninja and has decent abilities in the battlefield." She glared at him. "She is eighteen years old, and the Kyuubi's best friend and, from that little act I saw earlier, possible lover."

"I am not!" she snapped. "Just because he… doesn't mean that we're…" Itachi smirked.

"By your reaction, I believe that you are," he said. "Continuing on. No one may so much as touch her without her permission. We want her nice and pretty when the Kyuubi shows up to rescue her." _Again with the Kyuubi? What are they talking about?_ Suddenly she remembered something.

"_Why are they after you, though?"_

"_I… I can't tell you."_

Her eyes widened as she realized what Naruto was hiding. "He's the Kyuubi."

_Sakura's mother walked through the door, tears running down her face. Sakura looked up at her mother, wondering why she was crying. "Mommy?" she asked, tugging on her dress. "What's the matter?" Her mother smiled._

"_I was just thinking about your father," she said, patting Sakura on her head._

"_What happened to him?" Sakura didn't know. He had died when her mother was pregnant. Her mother looked down at her, tears threatening to fall once more._

"_He was killed in the war against the Kyuubi."_

"No…" she whispered to herself. Suddenly her eyes rolled back and she collapsed. The last thing she remembered was Itachi calling for someone to get a wet towel and someone picking her up off the floor.


	3. Do You Trust Me?

"_Trust is always earned, never given." _R. Williams

_Hey, stupid, wake up,_ Sakura's mind chided. The pink-haired girl's eyes fluttered open to see a white ceiling. She turned her head -- slowly due to the throbbing pain -- and saw Itachi sitting across the room, seemingly asleep.

"Good, you're awake," he said, opening his eyes. _Is the Sharingan always activated?_ "I was actually starting to wonder if you'd only collapsed or if it was poisoning." She smiled weakly, knowing that what he was really trying to say was that he was worried. He had a hard time showing his emotions, like Sasuke.

"How long was I out?" she asked him, her voice soft.

"A few hours," he replied. "Why'd you collapse? Surely you hadn't lost that much chakra." Sakura turned to face the other way.

"I didn't know about Naruto," she said, and Itachi's eyes widened in realization. The Kyuubi hadn't told his best friend about the demon inside of him? "The Kyuubi killed my father." She turned back to face him. "You wouldn't know how that feels. You _murdered_ your entire clan." _Save for Sasuke._

"What about your mother?" he asked, a bit afraid of her response. A tear rolled across her nose and down the opposite cheek. "I suppose I shouldn't be asking things like that."

"Sasuke killed her," she said finally, letting her emotions out like a tidal wave. She started sobbing quietly, and Itachi sat there in shock. _Sasuke?_

_Tsunade grabbed her arm before she could take off. "We can't risk you running into him. I've sent out a bunch of Jounin and Chuunin to take care of it. I want you to stay in here with me." Sakura inhaled shakily as she looked outside at the fires engulfing the village. Orochimaru had attacked once again, and Sasuke was with him._

_It was another day or so before Sakura was allowed to leave the infirmary. She, along with Tsunade and Shizune, had slept in the main office on blankets. When Sakura left, she ran as fast as she could to her house, only to find that it was one of the buildings that had been burnt to the ground._

"_MOM!" she cried, digging through the ashes. "No, no, no, no, no, no, NO! This can't be happening!" She dropped to her knees and started sobbing._

"_Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered into her ear, hugging her tightly. "She couldn't escape. I'm sorry." She turned around and cried into his chest. "You can stay with me until you can find your own place." She nodded, and they sat on the ground like that for the longest moment she could remember._

Itachi noticed her eyes glazing over and decided that now would be a good time to explain what was going to happen. "Sakura." Her focus returned and she looked at him, sitting up in the bed. "Some of the other members of Akatsuki have already shown an interest in you that you would probably rather avoid." He let that sink in. "In order to compensate, and to make sure that they don't try to take advantage of you, you will be staying here, in my room."

"What?!" she exclaimed hoarsely.

"You will be in your own separate bed, and my door will always be unlocked," he explained. "I realize that you don't trust me, but would you rather Kisame or Deidara rape you in the middle of the night?" Her eyes widened in alarm and he smirked. "I didn't think so. They won't think twice about coming into my room. You are safe in here."

"What about you?" she asked warily, watching for his reaction. When she'd stayed with Naruto for the month and a half between the invasion and finding her own apartment, she'd been in a similar predicament. But she trusted Naruto not to try anything; she knew that he loved her too much to take advantage of her.

"You are eighteen years old," he said simply. "I am twenty-three. I never have and never will have interest in girls the same age as my brother. Especially if they used to love him." She was taken aback by this statement. What did age have to do with anything? Naruto was almost twenty years old; his birthday was in a few months. He did have a point with the whole friend of his brother's deal, though. It would be kind of strange.

"Okay," she said. "But I want to be able to roam around wherever I want." She threw the covers off, then quickly brought them back up to her chin when she realized that she was wearing her bandages. Itachi stood up and walked over to her. He grabbed one of her arms and slapped a seal on it.

"If you leave the hideout, this seal will slowly drain your chakra until you die," he said straightforwardly. "Likewise, if you try to remove it, it will take your chakra with it, and you will die. Simply, don't do anything stupid." She nodded and he backed up. "I want you to trust me, Sakura. I want to be able to trust you as well." She closed her eyes. "I'll leave now so you can get dressed. Your clothes are in the dresser beside the bathroom. I put some shirts and pants in there; they may fit you. I'll come get you for lunch in ten minutes." When she opened her eyes, he was gone.

She stood up, letting the comforter fall to the bed. _Did he take my dress off?_ Her cheeks turned pink, and she decided she wouldn't linger too long on that idea. If she wanted to trust him, she would have to take all things he did in a good way. She opened the drawer to find her dress, along with two black t-shirts and a pair of black pants. With a closer inspection, she found that the two shirts bore the Uchiha clan symbol on the back. _These used to be his clothes? Probably from before the massacre._

She decided to try on the shirt and pants, and though they were a little big, they still fit her fairly well. The shirt was loose, falling to just below her waist, and the pants were very long and were a bit too big in the waist, falling on top of her hips. When Itachi walked in, he had to keep a laugh in at the sight of her. She was frowning, and her hair was a mess. She noticed this as well because she was running her fingers through her hair. "Itachi, would I be able to tailor these to fit me?"

"Um…" Itachi trailed off, looking at her closely. They didn't fit him anymore; he hadn't worn them since he left the village anyways. Why not? "Sure. But after lunch." She nodded and pulled up the pants, holding them up so she wouldn't trip up as they walked down the hallway. It didn't work. She tripped anyways. Before she hit the ground, a hand grabbed the collar of the shirt and pulled her back to her feet. She lost her balance and fell into Itachi, who wasn't expecting it and toppled backwards along with her.

Kisame walked into the hallway a moment later to see Itachi and Sakura struggling to get up. "So we can't have any fun with her, but you can?" Itachi immediately jumped up to defend himself and Kisame shook his head. "Never mind." He kept walking and Itachi turned to Sakura, who was on her back like a turtle. He offered his hand and helped her stand.

"Thanks," she said softly, following him to the dining room. She unconsciously scratched at the seal on her arm.

* * *

Sakura had excused herself early from the table after Deidara and Kisame started arguing about who would most likely get to sleep with her first. She'd been gone for twenty minutes before Itachi finished and headed down the hallway to his room.

When he walked in, Sakura was sitting on the floor in just her bandages, her back facing the door, sewing the shirt. She hadn't noticed him walk in, and he quietly shut the door and watched her for a few minutes. "There," she finally said, holding the shirt up. She'd done a lot to the shirt, including changing the neckline, shortening it, and making the waist smaller.

"That's fascinating," Itachi said, causing Sakura to jump.

"I didn't realize you were in here," she said calmly. "I'm done with the shirts. I just need to fix the pants. Basically all I have to do is hem the legs and bring in the waist. It shouldn't take but about ten minutes." She waited for him to say that he would be back in ten minutes, but he never moved. She finally said what was on her mind. "I'm really not very comfortable with you being in here while I'm just wearing my bandages."

"Why not?" he asked. "They cover you decently, don't they?" Sakura turned red as she grabbed the pants and started folding up the legs.

"Well, the only guy who's seen me like this is--"

"The Kyuubi."

"Naruto. Please don't call him that," she said, glaring at him. "I stayed in his apartment for a while after Orochimaru's invasion and I became more comfortable around him." Itachi smirked.

"Define a while."

Sakura's face reddened even more. "Almost two months. I was saving up money to buy my own apartment. Naruto gave me his money from missions, as did Lee, and Tsunade would give me bonuses at the infirmary. They all understood what I was going through."

"Did you sleep with him?" he asked bluntly. She tensed, poking her finger with the needle.

"No." She sucked on the finger she'd stabbed, and she failed to notice Itachi right behind her until it was far too late to escape.

"Did you want to?" he whispered deeply into her ear. She turned towards the sound of his voice and was shocked when he smirked at her. "Don't answer that." She turned back around, ignoring him completely. "I don't really care if you ignore me or not." She slowly turned her head towards him again, her skin tone returning to normal. She was sewing like crazy and had poked her fingers numerous times. It was a sign of her nervousness around him.

_Why is he making me like this?_

He stood up to leave, and suddenly Sakura didn't want to be alone. "Why are you leaving?" she asked, trying not to sound desperate. Itachi turned towards her and poked her forehead.

"I don't have time to watch you mend my clothes," he said. "I have to talk to the rest of the group." When he left, she put her fingers on her forehead, touching the place where he'd poked her.


	4. Niisan

"_One day, I'm gonna forget your name,_

_And one sweet day, you're gonna drown in my last pain."_

Evanescence, _Sweet Sacrifice_

Sakura was awakened from her sleep by Itachi shaking her awake frantically. She'd been living with him and the rest of the group for three months, and he'd stayed true to his word. He hadn't laid a finger on her, and she in return had tried nothing to leave. They were treating her well; why would she jeopardize that?

"What?" she asked groggily. She opened her eyes to see Itachi's concerned face, and woke up completely. "What?"

"You were having a nightmare," he said, helping her to sit up. "You woke me up; you were screaming." He put his hand under her chin. "Is everything okay, itouto?" She inwardly smiled at the nickname. He'd been treating her like a sister for a while and had started calling her as such. Her heart started racing when she realized that he was truly concerned for her.

"Mom…" she whispered, and Itachi immediately knew what her nightmare had been about. Before he could say anything, she wrapped her arms around his neck and cried. "Nii-san, I miss her." Itachi held back a choke. She'd never called him that before. Hell, he hadn't been called that since he'd left the village. He knew though that this was a sign that she completely trusted him, and he was relieved about that.

She backed up and looked at him, her eyes glistening with tears. He wanted so badly to kiss her quivering lips, to tell her that he would always be there to talk to, but if he did that, it may break the trust he'd finally earned. "Itouto, you should go back to sleep and rest up." Sakura nodded her head and laid back down on her pillow. When she closed her eyes, he leaned over and kissed her forehead.

When Itachi woke up on his own the next morning, he was surprised to find a sleeping Sakura next to him. He rubbed his eyes, racking through his brain and trying to piece together what had happened. Oh yes. Sakura had woken up yet again and asked to sleep in his bed, and he had obliged, being half asleep.

So here they were on the same bed, Sakura dressed in her bandages and him dressed in a comfortable pair of pants and a t-shirt. With further observation, he noticed that she was facing him, her nose pressed against his chest. "Sakura," he whispered, shaking her gently. She groaned and rolled over, opening her eyes slowly.

"Huh…?" she asked groggily, looking up at him.

"I need to get out of the bed, and you're conveniently in the way," he said, waiting for her to realize where exactly she was. 3... 2... 1...

"WHAT?!" she cried out, falling off of the bed. "I… you… we didn't… oh god…" Itachi offered his hand, and she reluctantly took it.

"Nothing happened. I don't even remember letting you sleep in my bed, honestly," he said, laughing silently at her red face. "This doesn't leave this room, though, got it?" She nodded. "If any of the others were to find out, they would come to conclusions without getting all the facts. It's already enough that you're sleeping in my room." Sakura's eyes widened as she thought of something, and she refused to make eye contact with him.

"You're… really comfortable," she mumbled, opening the drawer and slipping on her shirt. She stepped into her pants and walked back over to where Itachi was standing.

"You called me nii-san last night," he stated, ignoring her last statement, and she turned red again. He just loved embarrassing her. "I was thinking about taking you outside today." She touched the seal, and he nodded. "I would have to release the seal for the day."

"You can trust me," she said, and Itachi smiled. _He smiled?!_ "Do you trust me, Itachi?" She looked up at him. He placed his hands on her waist and his lips smirked slightly. Her face was still pink, and was getting more flushed every second. _He's going to kiss me,_ she thought, her heart threatening to burst out of her chest.

"Itachi!" Kisame's voice called through the door. "Breakfast is ready. Hurry up!" _Perfect,_ Sakura thought. _Great way to ruin the moment._ Apparently, from Itachi's expression he was thinking the same thing.

"Okay," he said. "I need to change, then I'll be right down." As soon as Kisame's footsteps disappeared, Itachi turned back to Sakura. "Give me just a second, okay nee-chan?" She nodded, and she missed the warmth of his hands as he walked over to his dresser. When he pulled his shirt up over his head, she tensed and quickly turned around.

When he was ready, he walked past her, grabbing her wrist and pulling her along. As they walked down the hallway, Itachi kept glancing at her. She noticed, but ignored it all the same. Right before they entered the dining room, he stopped, turned around, and kissed her, all in the frame of two seconds.

"You're never late," Deidara noted when Itachi came into the room with a very red Sakura. "What happened?" Itachi glanced at Sakura.

"I slept in," he said simply. "No big deal."

"Good morning Sakura," a voice behind her said, and she squealed in alarm, pressing into Itachi. Kisame laughed. "It's only me. Some ninja you are."

Sakura glared at him, knowing full and well that she was losing her touch. She hadn't fought in months, save for the occasional wrestling match with the Akatsuki, which she tried her best to avoid. Her eyes met Itachi's, and she knew that he was laughing in his head.

* * *

It hadn't taken long for Itachi to remove the seal, and she could feel control over her chakra again. Maybe she could convince him to leave it off for a while. 

Now, they were outside, walking through the woods. She wasn't sure where she was; that was probably his intention. He might trust her, but he knew that she was smart. As they walked, a million thoughts ran through her head. One, however, dominated her mind.

_Why did he kiss me?_

As if he could read her mind, he stopped, grabbing her arm and stopping her in the process. "What?" she asked, turning towards him. He pointed towards the east, and when she looked in that direction, she was awestruck at the sheer beauty of the field just a few yards away. "Wow…"

He started walking that way, and she was beginning to get frustrated. He hadn't said a word since breakfast. _What's his problem?_

"We have a few hours before we head back," he said. "Don't leave my sight." She nodded and he motioned for her to go on ahead. She happily obliged.

* * *

When they'd arrived back at the hideout, Itachi had put the seal back on, much to Sakura's disappointment, and ate before heading to bed. As usual, Sakura slept in her own bed. Nothing had changed between them concerning the previous night's events. 

Sakura, however, found herself awake in the middle of the night again, breathing raggedly at the nightmare she'd had.

The next morning, Sakura woke herself up to find the sun already up, and Itachi's arm wrapped around her. She took in his scent, then decided to wake him up. She shook his shoulder and one eye opened. As soon as he realized the time, he jumped up and started scrambling.

"Damn it, we slept in again," he said, hoping that nobody would notice.

No such luck.

"Itachi," Deidara's voice called through the door. "What's going on in there?"

"Nothing," Itachi said as Sakura hopped into her pants. When Deidara opened the door, he found a completely normal Itachi and a disheveled Sakura. "We'll be there in a minute." Deidara glanced at Sakura before pulling Itachi out of the room.

"What the hell is going on?" Deidara asked him. "Are you sleeping with her?"

"No," Itachi asked, his expression never wavering. "She trusts me; I don't want to break that trust."

"Do you want to?" Deidara asked, a bit softer. Itachi looked back at the closed door.

"Yes," he whispered.


	5. Mine

The only difference between friends and lovers is about four minutes. Scott Roeben 

Sakura had gotten used to waking up in Itachi's arms every morning; it was becoming routine. What she didn't expect was for him to lightly kiss her forehead before letting her get out of the bed. She blinked and stood up, slipping her shirt over her head and stepping into her pants, like every morning.

"I have a mission today," Itachi said, and Sakura turned to face him. "You're going with Kisame and me." Her eyes told him everything, and he sighed. "We're going to Konoha. I'm getting impatient with the Kyuubi."

"So your whole 'take Sakura and lure Naruto here' plan didn't work, huh?" Sakura asked sarcastically. "Naruto's smarter than that, and so is Hokage-sama. They know that I can take care of myself." He grabbed her shoulder and she gasped, looking up into his Sharingan eyes.

"Don't talk to me like that again, understood?" he asked, and she nodded. "We're going after the Kyuubi, and when we get there, I don't want you to be seen." She nodded again. "You're going to wear Deidara's robe and hat, and pose as an Akatsuki member. _Don't talk._ We don't want your cover blown." A pause. "If you do anything stupid, I'll kill you without hesitation. This includes telling the Kyuubi who you are, fighting alongside the Kyuubi, talking without my permission, or anything that would jeopardize this mission." She could hear the seriousness in his voice and nodded a third time. He let go of her and walked over to his own clothes, where he took off his nightclothes and slipped on his shinobi outfit. "We leave in two hours," he said not looking at her.

* * *

She adjusted the hat on top of her head. It was a bit awkward, but she'd have to live with it. She was standing outside with Kisame and Itachi, waiting for them to start the walk to Konoha, however far it may be.

And they were off.

An hour into the trek, Itachi grabbed Sakura's arm, slowing her down behind Kisame, who wasn't paying attention to his two teammates at the moment. "What?" she whispered. He looked at her intently.

"Don't forget what I told you this morning," he said sternly, and she nodded.

"Of course," she said. "I'm not to be seen or heard by anyone in Konoha." He sighed, a bit relieved before moving the cloth hanging from her hat and kissing her softly and longingly. When he backed away from her, he could see her face reddening.

* * *

Sakura was still a bit dazed when they decided to stop for the night, but was alert and focused as usual. Kisame volunteered to set up camp, and Itachi and Sakura headed off to find a water source. About a hundred meters from the campsite, Sakura stopped him. "The river's in the other direction," she stated, and Itachi looked down at her.

"I know," he said. She ran her fingers through her hair agitatedly. She was glad she could take the hat off. "Do you remember when I first took you, and how you were skeptical of me… being in the same room as you?" She nodded.

"That was a long time ago," she said softly. "You said that you'd never be interested in girls the same age as your brother, especially since I was friends with him." Itachi sighed.

"I lied," he said straightforwardly. She took a step back, but he grabbed her arm. "But you can trust me." She relaxed a bit, believing him, and he leaned in and captured her lips once again. She leaned into the kiss and he wrapped his arms around her waist to keep them from losing their balance.

He tugged lightly at her lower lip with his teeth, and she reluctantly parted her lips, letting his tongue slip into her mouth. When his tongue made contact with hers, she suddenly jolted back into reality and backed up as far as she could in his arms. He could hear her ragged breaths, and he knew that her mind was fighting her body for dominance. "Sakura…" he said softly, hoping to calm her down. He knew that he had caught her off guard, and had probably broken the trust he'd tried so hard to gain. She looked up at him and bit her bottom lip before standing on her toes and pressing her lips onto his again.

"Ahem," a voice coughed, and they separated like two north magnets. Kisame was standing there, a none-too-pleased look on his face. "What's going on here?" Sakura was red as a tomato, and Itachi looked surprisingly guilty.

"Nothing that should concern you," Itachi answered, narrowing his eyes at his teammate. "Aren't you setting up camp?"

"Aren't you going the wrong direction?" Kisame retorted sarcastically, anger lacing his voice. "I don't care what you do when… nobody's around… but at least have the decency to let me know I need to get the water." Itachi smirked.

"Sakura and I will get the water," he said. "You go back and set up camp. We'll be back in… twenty minutes." Not really satisfied, Kisame grunted and walked back towards the campsite. Itachi turned back to Sakura.

"Let's head towards the river now," he said, and she nodded blankly. He grabbed her wrist and led her towards the east, where the moon was just starting to rise. She followed him without a sound.

* * *

When they returned to camp, Kisame grudgingly took the water from them, mumbling incoherently, and took it over to the fire he'd started after nightfall. Itachi, still holding onto Sakura's hand, led her into their tent. Itachi and Kisame had only ever needed two tents, and Sakura usually slept with Itachi anyways.

But not like that…

He zipped up the tent, allowing the light of the fire to penetrate the tent material, and turned around to face her. The tent was big enough to fit two people comfortably, but it wasn't tall enough for both of them to stand in. He was on his knees and she was sitting on her pillow, staring at him.

He crawled over to her and took her cheek in his hand. She flinched, but didn't move away. "I don't know why Sasuke ignored you," he whispered.

"He wants to kill you," she answered shakily. "That's the only thing that matters to him. I was just an obstacle." She averted her eyes. "A burden."

"No," he whispered, lightly kissing her jawbone. "He's an idiot." He captured her lips with his and she moaned almost inaudibly. His fingers traced her collarbone and teased with the collar of her shirt. The other hand moved from her cheek down her side to her waist, his first hand soon following suit. He broke the kiss just long enough to pull her shirt over her head, and he tossed it to the side.

"Itachi," Kisame's voice broke through his conscious. He glared at Kisame's silhouette outside the tent.

"What?!" he snapped, kissing Sakura's fingers. "I'm busy."

"Well, put the fire out when you go to sleep. I'm going to bed," he said, and Itachi sighed.

"Whatever," he said, watching his teammate's outline slowly fade. He had her lips again in an instant. Her hands pressed against his chest, but she wasn't pushing him away. She had his shirt in both hands, and she repositioned herself to where she was effectively sitting on his lap. She could feel his arousal, but she knew it could wait until later. Right now, all she wanted was his kiss.

* * *

When Sakura woke up the next morning, everything had returned back to normal. She found herself in Itachi's arms again, his warm breath on her neck. She thought back to the previous night and found her face warm up. They hadn't done anything _forbidden_, per say, but it had been one hell of a make-out session.

When she heard him wake up, she turned over and kissed his lips. He smirked, capturing her in a less innocent kiss before sitting up. It was dawn; the sun wasn't far up in the sky. Sakura could hear Kisame moving around the campsite. "Do you realize how badly I wanted to take you last night?" She turned towards Itachi.

"Considering you were stiff as a board, I'd say so," she said, causing Itachi to turn red. He hadn't expected her to say _that_. "Do you realize how badly I wanted you to?" Itachi was caught off guard, his head snapping up to meet her eyes. She was as red as him. "You do realize that if I do… sleep with you… that I'll never be able to go back to Konoha."

"We have one more night before we reach Konoha," Itachi said, lightly touching her upper arm. Her lips parted as she thought, and she closed her eyes.

"Itachi, I…" she started. He kissed her forehead.

"Don't think about it," he said softly to her. "Let's go before Kisame gets mad at us." She nodded and they changed into their Akatsuki robes.

As they traveled, Itachi would occasionally take Sakura's hand and kiss her fingers, not unnoticed by Kisame, who tried his best to ignore them.

When they settled for the next night, Kisame could feel the tension between Sakura and Itachi, wondering if he dared ask what was wrong. They'd seemed so… content earlier. Now they were avoiding each other like the plague.

When Itachi and Sakura got into their tent, Sakura averted her eyes from his. "Sakura," he whispered softly, kissing her neck and jaw line. "It's your decision…" When she remained silent, he sighed. He kissed her lips slowly, waiting for a reaction. She leaned into him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She backed away and looked at him, tears lining her eyes.

"I… I feel like I'm breaking some kind of rule," she said quietly, and Itachi chuckled.

"You're with an S-class criminal," he said, tracing her hairline. "You're going to break some rules." With that said, he kissed her again, and he leaned over until he had her pinned underneath him on the sleeping bag. "What are you going to tell the Kyuubi?" he asked, and he felt her tense up. _I just totally ruined any chance of sleeping with her,_ he thought as she pried herself away from him.

She spent the next few minutes on the side of the tent opposite him, trying her best to ignore him even though her body screamed in protest. Finally, Itachi got tired of this silent treatment and crawled over to where she was sitting, kissing her neck. Again, an intense battle between mind and body ensued within Sakura, and her mind finally gave in.

I'm so going to regret this, she thought. 


End file.
